Flow controlling bottle closures



y 18, 1961 B. FORMAN 2,992,762

FLOW CONTROLLING BOTTLE CLOSURES Filed June 26. 1958 s4 s? so 5: 31a ma '3'.

INVEN TOR.

United States Patent 2,992,762 FLOW CONTROLLING BO'ITLE CLOSURES Benjamin Forrnan, 'Rte. 2, 2 Water St., Edison, NJ. Filed June 26, 1958, Ser. No. 744,780 3 Claims. (Cl. 222484) This invention relates to an improved bottle closure, having a sliding discharge tube constructed to permit of discharge flow when the tube is manually forced inwardly and to shut oflf flow when the tube is manually withdrawn to the limit of movement provided, and provided with an air inlet passage disposed in a stopper in which the tube slides and having a inlet at the edge of the closure which may be close by finger pressure and which is closed at its inner end by a pin valve carried by the inner end of the sliding tube.

An object of the invention is to provide a bottle closure with an insertible stopper element, a pouring tube having a snug sliding fit in the bore of this stopper and provided with an inlet opening eflfectively sealed by the wall of the stopper bore when the tube is in its flow closing position, a vent passage for the admission of air to the bottle to replace liquid withdrawn, and a member carried by the sliding tube which has a pin to enter the inner end of the vent passage of the closure and prevent evaporation or leakage through the vent passage, the latter having communication with the atmosphere through a port in the cap.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention relates to certain constructions, combinations and arrangements of parts shown in the accompanying drawings and described and claimed in the following specification thereof, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a modified form of the closure, showing the closure coupled to a bottle neck and the valve in closed position.

FIG. 2 is a similar view, showing the valve in open position.

FIG. 3 is a detail sectional view of the pouring tube, enlarged, showing the air vent valve pin.

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of a closure cap.

In FIGS. 1 to 4, inclusive, I show the application of my invention to the controlled discharge of the bottled liquid, when no pressure gas is employed. fin these views, a tapered rubber or plastic stopper is used, having a central bore through which the pouring tube and valve 31 slides. The stopper 30 is forced into pressure engagement with a bottle neck by means of a coupling sleeve 32, having an end wall 33 and a skirt wall 34, formed with internal screw threads 34a, designed to have coupling engagement with the external screw threads of a mating bottle neck.

The tube 31 is formed with a port 31a in its wall, which is normally sealed by the bore wall of the stopper 30. This tube is equipped with a disc 35a on its lower end, and this disc carries a small pin 36, which is designed to enter the lower end of the air vent 37 formed in the stopper 3!).

The air vent 37 extends through the stopper to an upper part of the stopper and is then diverted laterally to the side of the stopper, where it communicates with the air vent 38 formed in the skirt wall of the sleeve 32, which extends completely through this skirt wall 34.

The tube 31 is equipped on its upper end with a knob or finger bearing 39, and to this knob a lateral discharge tube 40 is connected. The tube 31 is formed with a longitudinal key or rib 31b which presses into the bore wall of the stopper so as to prevent relative rotation of the tube in the stopper, or the stopper on the tube, and to keep the valve pin 36 always aligned with the lower or inner end of the air vent 37.

2,992,762 Patented July 18, 1961 In this form of the invention the valve tube 31 is shifted to open position by the downward manual movement of the knob 39, which causes the lower end of the tube 31 to move below the lower end of the stopper and thereby withdraw the port 31a from the stopper. By tilting the bottle to pouring position the liquid will flow by gravity into the tube 31 and outwardly through the tube 46 to the receiving glass or vessel. While the bottle is held in this pouring position the fiow may be stopped instantly by placing a finger on the air vent 38 of the closure sleeve 32. This permits the movement of the bottle from one glass to another in pouring wines, liquids or beverages of any kind, without changing the pouring position of the bottle.

To seal the bottle against evaporation or leakage the knob 39 is pulled upwardly, thereby withdrawing the port 31a into the stopper, sufi'iciently removed from the lower end of the stopper that leakage and evaporation are effectively prevented.

My invention provides in each case a positive seal for the bottle, and repeated tests establish that no leakage takes place when bottles equipped with my closure are inverted, and remain inverted for long periods of time.

To compensate for different seating positions of the bottle cap, with reference to the air venting duct 38, the inner side of the end wall of the cap may be formed with a circular groove 38a, having communication with the inner end of the vent duct or passage 38, as shown in FIG. 4. Due to this construction the cap need not be arranged so that the air vent duct 38 is in direct communication with the vertical air passage 37 of the stopper plug.

In a form of the invention a stopper or closure plug of plastic or rubber material which is resilient is employed, and in each case the stopper has a tapered fit in its container neck, so that by forcing the stopper inwardly causes the stopper to clutch un-der greater pressure the metal pouring tube which slides through the stopper. The tightening of the closure cap on the container also tends to force the stopper into better sealing engagement with the pouring tube. The discharge opening in the wall of the sliding pouring tube is inset from the lower end of the tube so that a considerable portion of the lower end of the stopper will be between this discharge hole and the lower end of the pouring tube which is sealed by its own end wall.

In actual practice bottles equipped with my closure have been inverted and also subjected to considerable agitation, and no leakage of any kind occurred when the pouring tube was in its normal sealed inner position.

It is understood that various changes in the details of construction, their combination and arrangement, and reasonable variation thereof, may be carried out without departing from the scope of the invention, as defined by the claims hereof.

Having described my invention I claim as patentable:

1. A flow controlling bottle closure, comprising a stopper having an axial bore, means for securing the stopper in the neck of a bottle, a pouring tube having a closed inner end which slidably projects through the stopper and which has a limited outward movement and is provided with a flow passage in its wall normally sealed by said stopper, the movement of the pouring tube inwardly of the stopper being limited to cause the flow passage to be displaced inwardly of the stopper when the pouring tube is manually forced inwardly of the stopper, the inner end of the stopper having a valve pin and the stopper having a vent for air which is closed by said valve pin when the pouring tube flow passage is fully sealed by said stopper, the means for securing the stopper in the bottle neck being provided with an air vent communicating with the air vent of the stopper and extend- 2; A flow controlling closure for bottles, comprising the combination with a bottle having a neck of a stopper fitted in the neck and provided with a pouring tube slidable in the stopper and provided with a closed inner end and a flow passage in the wall of the tube disposed inwardly of said inner end and adapted to be disposed inwardly of the inner end of the stopper when the pour- ,ing tube is shifted inwardly therein, the stopper having an air venting passage located outwardly of the pouring tube; a cap embracing the neck of the bottle and coupled thereto by a turning movement thereon and having an end wall provided with an opening through which the pouring tube slidably extends, said cap having a lateral air venting passage disposed radially thereof and opening at the outer surface of the cap, the cap also having a circular groove concentric to the cap on the inner side of the end wall thereof which is in communication with the lateral air venting passage thereof, said groove being disposed in line with the air venting passage of the stopper, the pouring tube being keyed against relative turning movement on the stopper, whereby the air venting passage of the stopper will be in communication with the lateral air venting passage of the cap in all positions the cap may be disposed in on the bottle neck, the pouring 2,992,7ea p A .t

4 tube having means carried by the inner end thereof for closing the inner end of the air venting passage of the stopper, when the pouring tube is in its closed position in said stopper.

3. A bottle closure, comprising a resilient stopper having a bore extending through the same from one end to the other end and a closure cap having means for coupling itself to the neck of a bottle which encloses the stopper, the stopper having an air passage extending from its inner end to the upper end thereof and the closure cap having a circular groove which communicates with said air passage and is further provided with an air passage communicating with said circular groove and extending to the side of the cap, a cylindrical tube having a snug sliding fit in said bore and provided on its inner end with a valve element which is engageable with the inner end of the stopper to close the air passage thereof when the tube is in uppermost position, the tube being keyed against rotation in said stopper and provided with an intake hole in its wall which is located inwardly of the inner end of the tube and which is closeable by the upward movement of the tube to bring the valve element thereof into closing relation to the inner end of the air passage.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,345,965 Shute July 6, 1920 2,829,808 Bodkin Apr. 8, 1958 2,901,153 Collins Aug. 25, 1959 

